The Covenants And The Covenanters: Covenants, Sermons, and Documents of the Covenanted Reformation
Religion
The Covenants And The Covenanters: Covenants, Sermons, and Documents of the Covenanted Reformation
Covenanters -- Scotland -- History -- Sources; Presbyterian Church -- Scotland -- History -- Sources
3. The want of godly agents, to manage a godly cause, a great
lamentation. "Help, Lord, save, O God, for the godly fail, and the
faithful cease from among men:" were there any such in being, they would
bear rule with God, and be faithful for the saints, their persons and
prayers would gain prevalency with God, their endeavours and constancy
would show fidelity to the saints, and then in Judah, our land, would
things go well: and as once Ezekiel of the scarcity of fit governors to
rule, so we of fit men to fight, when corruption and looseness hath so
possessed the hearts, and lives of our men of war, that there remains no
sanctified and godly man to make a soldier; "This is a lamentation, and
shall be for a lamentation."
4. What ground have we to expect good? When the sons of darkness go to
cast out the prince of darkness, is this possible? Can Satan cast out
Satan? It is a satisfactory answer, that we rest in, and stops the
mouths of all not incurably blinded, when we hear of protestations, and
promises to maintain the protestant religion and laws of the land; when
we see, that the effecting of the one is by the sword of papists, of the
other, by the hand of delinquents; except we should think, that man can
(as God) work happy ends by contrary means. For we say, how can Satan
cast out Satan? So to ourselves, 'tis not very likely, that, if Satan
keep the hold he hath of our souls, you should dispossess him of that
strong hold he hath of our land. But you know so much, and therefore by
engaging your heart this day to God you first endeavour to expel Satan
out of your own consciences; and then shall you see clearly to drive him
from our kingdom.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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